Lo mein

Lo mein
Traditional Chinese	撈麵 or 撈麪
Simplified Chinese	捞面
Hanyu Pinyin	lāo miàn
Literal meaning	mix noodle
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin lāo miàn Yue: Cantonese Jyutping lo1 min6

Lo mein is a Chinese dish with noodles. It often contains vegetables and some type of meat or seafood, usually beef, chicken, pork, shrimp or wontons. Traditionally this is a variation of wonton noodle soup. The soup is simply separated from the noodles and other ingredients and served on the side. However, the version sold in many places in North America is rather a hybrid of chow mein, though they are prepared differently. Chow mein is stir-fried while lo mein is not fried.

Etymology

The Chinese word 撈 (lāo in Mandarin and lau⁴ in Cantonese) means "scoop something out of water," or "separate something from water," like straining. The same written 撈 (pronounced differently as lo) also means "stir" or "mix" in Cantonese. To native Chinese, the name refers to a way of serving noodles rather than a particular dish.

American Chinese cuisine

In American Chinese restaurants, lo mein is a popular take-out food. In this setting, Lo mein noodles are usually stirred with brown sauce (a sauce made from soy sauce, corn starch, sugar, and other seasoning), carrots, bok choy or cabbage, onions, and shrimp, roast pork, beef, or chicken. Lobster lo mein, vegetable lo mein, and "House" lo mein (more than one meat) are often available.

However, in some regions of Western North America such as Vancouver, ordering Lo Mein will result in a dry dish of Thin noodles with oyster sauce on top. This is accompanied by a bowl of broth used for wonton soup. This is much closer to the original Hong Kong version of the dish.

Gallery

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  American Chinese-style lo mein

See also

• Chinese noodles
• Chow mein
• Lamian
• Pancit
• Ramen
• Yakisoba